Briefly the present invention relates to a tool for removal as well as installation of elastic, drive belt of the type utilized in various engine and machine applications such as in automobile engines which employ pulleys connected by a drive belt.
In recent years automotive manufacturers have introduced stretch drive belts in place of fixed length belts to connect pulleys which drive various automotive components such as water pumps, power steering pumps, air conditioner compressors and the like. Such components are typically driven by a belt which connects a drive pulley to one or more driven component pulleys. Heretofore, such belts were of a fixed length and would not stretch. Thus, idler rollers or belt tension pulleys were required to tighten the belts so that they could efficiently effect operation between a drive and a driven pulley.
The development and use of belts which stretch elastically when placed between drive and driven pulleys eliminates the need for idler rollers or other belt tightening mechanisms. Removal of belt tensioning devices provides various beneficial results including reduced weight of the motor vehicle and reduced cost of mechanisms to ensure efficient and appropriate operation of the components in the motor vehicle. In addition, the replacement of fixed length belts with stretch belts often leads to reduced cost of maintenance. For example, special tools and repair procedures are often required to replace prior art, non-stretchable, fixed length belts.
The introduction of stretch drive belts has, however, presented a problem of effecting appropriate stretching of belts for removal from pulleys connected by such belts and for installation of such belts. Various proposals have been made and various tools have been suggested to effect removal or installation of the belts. Typically a special tool is required to remove a belt from a set of pulleys and a separate tool is required to install a belt on pulleys. Thus, the availability of a universal tool of simple and unique construction to effect both installation as well as removal of an elastic or stretch belt has remained a desired tool for automotive repair and for use in other circumstances where stretch belts are utilized to drive mechanical components.